Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Recent IELTS Exams (Canada & India) · 2026-10-23

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The pie charts below show how working adults in a particular country spent their time in 1958 and 2008.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

* Note: these aren’t the original diagrams given in the test, they were recreated for the purpose of demonstration.

Student answer (Band 4.5)

The given pie chart shows information about how working adults in a particular country spent their time in 1958 and 2008. The pie graph compares different categories and present the date of the day spent by working adults on various activities in 1958 and 2008. To begin with, the pie chart campares different category in 1958. First category is working its value 33% is the highest, and travelling to work is show 2% is the lowiest, while relaxing at home its value 8%, second last category is sleeping its show 32%, and last going out with friends/family its value is 19%. In addition, the pie chart compares different categories in 2008. First category working its value 42% is the higest, while going out with friends/family its show 6% is the lowest, playing sports and travelling to work its value is 7% same, second last category is relaxing at home its show 13%, last category is sleeping its value 25%.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 4.0

You identify the two years and report several figures accurately, including working (33% to 42%), sleeping (32% to 25%), and travel (2% to 7%). However, the response mainly lists categories rather than summarising the main changes, and it has no clear overview of the broad pattern. The claim that working is the highest category in both years is supported, but the major fall in going out with friends or family (19% to 6%) and the appearance of sports in 2008 are not explained as key features. The response is also five words below the 150-word minimum; the 14 words copied from the task prompt are excluded from the count. Add a concise overview and compare the most significant rises and falls.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The response has a basic sequence: an introduction followed by information about 1958 and then 2008. Phrases such as “To begin with” and “In addition” help signal this order, so the reader can generally follow which year is being described. However, the two main sections are presented as long, list-like sentences, with little grouping or comparison between years. Repeated openings such as “the pie chart compares different categories” do not advance the discussion, and expressions like “first category” and “last category” make the order seem arbitrary. Use separate paragraphs for an overview and the key comparisons, and connect related changes across the years rather than listing each chart independently.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use enough basic topic vocabulary to identify the activities and report percentages, including “working,” “sleeping,” and “relaxing at home.” The repeated use of “category,” “value,” and “show,” however, makes the description limited and repetitive, while phrases such as “its value 33% is the highest” are not natural ways to describe chart data. There are also noticeable spelling errors, including “campares,” “lowiest,” and “higest,” which reduce the accuracy of the vocabulary. Build a more varied set of chart-reporting expressions, such as “accounted for,” “rose to,” and “fell to,” and check spelling carefully. This would make the comparisons clearer and more appropriate to an academic report.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response communicates the basic information using simple clauses and some attempts to combine details with “while” and “and.” However, the range of sentence structures is limited, and errors occur frequently in the sentence patterns. For example, “the pie chart campares different category in 1958” lacks appropriate plural marking, while “travelling to work is show 2%” has an incorrect verb construction. Several clauses also omit a verb or linking structure, as in “First category working its value 42%.” These problems make the writing sound fragmented, even though the intended figures are usually understandable. Practise complete subject–verb sentences, accurate articles and plurals, and patterns such as “Working accounted for 33%” or “The figure for travel rose to 7%.”

See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.

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